Each year, about 150 California physicians lose their license to practice medicine due to surrender or revocation. However, only about 10 percent, 15 or so, attempt to reinstate their medical license through a petition for reinstatement. Reinstating a surrendered or revoked California medical license is not a lost cause. With proper preparation, organization, patience, persistence and the help of an experienced attorney, a California medical license can be reinstated. California Law Enables Reinstatement of a Lost Medical License in Most Cases A physician can petition for reinstatement once th ..read more

California State Assembly Bill 1954 (AB 1954) has added a new law, California Business and Professions Code section 2228.5, which shields California physicians from Medical Board punishment for providing medical treatment to patients who merely test positive for THC or report medical cannabis use. Prior to the enactment of this new law, some physicians treating pain have denied treatment to patients who report using marijuana or test positive for marijuana by regarding such patients as ones who use illicit drugs and therefore have a substance use disorder. The Medical Board of California has s ..read more

California physicians recently arrested for crimes receive a letter from the Medical Board of California that begins “[t]he Medical Board of California has received notification from the Department of Justice of your arrest on [date] by the [name] police department ….”. This letter, captioned “PERSONAL & CONFIDENTIAL”, sternly reminds physicians of their obligation under Business and Professions Code Section 802.1 to report misdemeanor and felony convictions, and the bringing of a felony indictment or information. In the final paragraph, in bold, the letter states “[t]he Board is requestin ..read more

Investigators, with More Resources, Dig for Evidence of Abuse, Impairment, Health Issues and Errors Beyond Received Complaints According to the Medical Board of California’s 2022 Sunset Review, the Medical Board of California conducted nearly 10,000 investigations in its 2021-2022 fiscal year. According to the report, during the pandemic the Board struggled with investigations. The Board had previously relied on a paper-based system that could not accommodate remote work and staffing issues. However, the Sunset Review report plus anecdotal evidence suggests that the Board has adapted to workin ..read more

Physicians who have lost their Medical Board license or find themselves on probation are often legally entitled to petition for license reinstatement or relief from license probation, under Business and Professions Code section 2307. This process is accessible to unrepresented parties through a petition, with instructions, available online. It is preferable, however, to hire an experienced licensing and regulatory law firm such as Ray & Bishop, PLC, to handle such matters. Below are some important aspects of Medical Board petitions for penalty relief – early termination of probation, relie ..read more

California Business and Professions Code section 2310 empowers the Medical Board of California to immediately and without prior notice suspend certain California physician licenses.  Business and Professions Code section 2310 provides that if a California physician’s license in another state is suspended or revoked outright and that action is reported to the National Practitioners Data Bank, and the physician’s primary place of practice is outside of California, the physician’s California license can be immediately suspended.  The suspension stays in place unless overturned by a hear ..read more

Mandated Reporting of Sexual Misconduct Allegations against California Licensed Physicians by Healthcare Facilities The Medical Board of California and other healthcare licensing boards hold licensed physicians and other healthcare licensees to an extremely high standard regarding sexual misconduct allegations. Every day physicians, and other healthcare licensees, who communicate with hundreds of patients each week, face the possibility of patients reporting unprofessional conduct, which can trigger a license investigation and license discipline. Existing laws require the Medical Board of Cali ..read more

Senate Bill (SB) 798 has made changes to postgraduate training and licensing requirements for all residents applying for a Physician’s and Surgeon’s Certificate with the Medical Board of California, effective January 1, 2020.  Previously, the Medical Board of California (MBC) only required international medical graduates (IMGs) to obtain a Postgraduate Training Authorization Letter (PTAL) to apply for residency and to train in California. SB 798 revisions no longer require international applicants to obtain a PTAL. Effective 2020, all domestic and international medical graduates must acqu ..read more

A physician client came to Ray & Bishop, PLC, after receiving a Statement of Issues from the California Medical Board alleging that the client had a history of substance abuse and mental health concerns.  The California Medical Board obtained the client’s medical history, and using the medical records from prior hospitals, alleged that the client demonstrated Unprofessional Conduct, Impairment, and Excessive Alcohol Use, under Business and Professions Code sections 2221 and 2234.  The Medical Board offered five years’ probation in settlement, but we took the matter before an Admi ..read more

The California Medical Board received 8,679 complaints in fiscal year 2015-16 according to its latest comprehensive enforcement activity report.  During that same period, 299 accusations were filed by the Medical Board of California.  Medical license defense cases came from complaints overwhelmingly from the public, but also from complaints from license and professional groups and other governmental agencies.  Physician license defense cases in that period resulted in 120 cases of license probation, 129 cases where the physician’s license was revoked or surrendered, and 62 publi ..read more